Sawm - the Islamic fast

Introduction
Saum
A Farz
Saum
Philosophy &
Wisdom
Saum
Virtues
Saum
Types
Saum
The Exempt
Saum
Conditions
Saum
Benefits
Saum
Missed Fasts
Saum
Wajib Fasts
Saum
Voluntary Fast
Conclusion

IntroductionIntroduction
• Sawm (Arabic : )
• The word sawm is derived from Syriac - sawmo
• Literally, Sawm means 'to abstain'
• Saum in Ramzan one of the 5 pillars of Islam
(but fasting is not confined to just Ramadan)

Five Pillars of IslamFive Pillars of Islam
5 duties incumbent on every Muslim
Shahadah
Salah
Zakah
Sawm
(fasting during Ramzan)
Haj

SawmSawm
DefinitionDefinition
Sawm in Islam means :
• abstaining from eating, drinking and
sensuous pleasures
• from early dawn to sunset
• with the explicit intention of doing so
(for the sake of Allah)

SawmSawm
Obligatory actObligatory act
3 levels of the Ramadan fast:
• ONE: refraining from forbidden physical acts
(performed with the body organs)
• TWO: restraining from saying, hearing &
looking at forbidden things
(performed with the senses)
• THREE: renewing one's devotion to Allah
(performed with the heart and mind)

SawmSawm
DefinitionDefinition
Sawm (also siyam), fasting, commemorates :
• the revelation of the Quran
• to humanity during Ramzan
• the ninth month of the Islamic year

SawmSawm
An obligationAn obligation
Fasting in Ramzan is Farz upon every
• sane
• adult
• healthy Muslim
• who is not travelling
Allah promises rewards to those who fast
and severe punishment to defaulters

SawmSawm
Obligatory actObligatory act
• Eating, drinking, smoking and sensuous pleasures
prohibited from Fajr to Maghrib
• Made Farz in the 2nd
year Anno Hijri
• Essentially a means of: seeking nearness to Allah
& increasing piety

QuranQuran
Surah al Baqarah:183Surah al Baqarah:183
O you who believe!
fasting is prescribed for you,
as it was prescribed for those before you, so
that you may guard
(against evil)

QuranQuran

QuranQuran
For a certain number of days; but whoever
among you is sick or on a journey, then (he
shall fast) a (like) number of other days;
and those who are not able to do it may
effect a redemption by feeding a poor man;
so whoever does good spontaneously it is
better for him; and that you fast is better for
you if you know.

QuranQuran

QuranQuran
• The month of Ramzan is that in which the
Quran was revealed, a guidance to men and
clear proofs of the guidance and the
distinction; therefore whoever of you is
present in the month, he shall fast therein,
and whoever is sick or upon a journey, then
(he shall fast) a (like) number of other days;
Allah desires ease for you, and He does not
desire for you difficulty, and (He desires)
that you should complete the number and
that you should exalt the greatness of Allah
for His having guided you and that you may
give thanks

SawmSawm
Non-obligatory fastingNon-obligatory fasting
• Some of the prescribed days for voluntary
fasting:

Monday & Thursday each week

13, 14 and 15th
of each lunar month

Any 6 days of Shawwal

Day of Arafat (9th
Dhu al-Hijj)

HadithHadith
Ahmad and An NisaiAhmad and An Nisai
Abu Tharr quotes
the Prophetsaw
as saying:
“He of you who wants to fast three days in a
month,
let him fast the three white days.”

SawmSawm
Non-obligatory fastingNon-obligatory fasting
• The Prophetsaw
used to fast on three days of each
lunar month
• Mostly these days were “the white days”
• When the moon appears in its fullness
• Corresponds to 13, 14 and 15th

SawmSawm
Philosophy andPhilosophy and
WisdomWisdom

SawmSawm
It’s Philosophy and WisdomIt’s Philosophy and Wisdom
• An act of worship done for Allah
• The abd (slave) draws closer to Allah by
abandoning his desires
• Test of Faith and servitude

SawmSawm
• A means of attaining taqwa
As Allah says:
"O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you as
it was prescribed for those before you, in order
that you gain taqwa”
Do the obligatory and avoid the sinful

SawmSawm
• Abandoning desires opens heart to remembrance
of Allah
• Spurs the wealthy to generosity and charity
• Suppression of urge teaches control of nafs

SawmSawm
• Abandoning desires induces humility and softens
a person towards Allah’s creation
• Rests digestive system, which leads to discharge
of excess wastes and toxins

HadithHadith
Sahih al BukhariSahih al Bukhari
The Prophet saw
has said:
"Whoever does not abandon false speech, acting
upon that (false speech) and (acts of) ignorance
(i.e. sins), then Allah has no need of him
abandoning his food and drink."
Desires during fasting must be suppressed

SawmSawm
It’sIt’s
VirtuesVirtues

SawmSawm
The objective behind fasting isThe objective behind fasting is
• to restrain the soulto restrain the soul
• to control the soul's strengthto control the soul's strength
• to harness the souls energyto harness the souls energy
• to attain taqwato attain taqwa
• accustom human body to hardshipaccustom human body to hardship

HadithHadith
Sahih al BukhariSahih al Bukhari
Fasting has a special quality that is not found
in anything else - its close connection to
Allah, such that He says:
"The fast (sawm) is for Me
and I will reward it"
Hence the high status of fasting

SawmSawm
It’s VirtuesIt’s Virtues
• 2 significant facts about fasting :
• Firstly:
a secret & hidden action
riya (showing off) cannot enter into it
• Secondly:
• means of subjugating Allah’s enemies
• because the road that they embark upon is that
of desires
• eating and drinking etc strengthens desires

HadithHadith
al Nisaial Nisai
Abu Umaamahra
said:
"I said: 'O Messenger of Allah, tell me of an action
by which I may enter Paradise'. He said: 'Take to
Fasting, there is nothing like it.' "
The Prophetsaw
singled out fasting when asked about a deed
that leads its doer to the best of rewards- Paradise. Hence
the greatness of the deed.

HadithHadith
Ibn MajahIbn Majah
The Prophetsaw
has said:
"Perhaps a person fasting will receive nothing from
his fasting except hunger and thirst."
This hadeeth should raise our concern about fasting and
increase our desire to perform this act of worship with the
best intention and in accordance with the Sunnah of the
Prophetsaw

SawmSawm
• Obligation and a means to attain taqwa - which
increases believers in their ranks with Allah
"The most honoured by Allah amongst you are
those best in taqwa"
[Quran 49:13]

SawmSawm
The Prophet saw
said:
"Fasting is a shield"
• The unmarried should fast to shield themselves from lust
and sin

SawmSawm
It’s virtuesIt’s virtues
• elevation of ones rank
• expiation of sins
• breaking of ones desires & lusts
• increase of charity
• increases obedience of Allah
• giving thanks to Allah
• prevents even the contemplation of sin

8 types8 types of Fastof Fast
• Farz e Muaiyyan
Fasting for the whole month of Ramzan once a
year
• Farz e Ghair Muaiyyan
The duty to keep Qaza of fasts missed in the
month of Ramzan with or without a valid reason

Types of FastTypes of Fast
• Wajib Muaiyyan
Fasting on a specific day/date, for the sake of
Allah, upon the fulfillment of a wish
• Wajib Ghair Muaiyyan

To pledge fasting without fixing any day/date,
upon the fulfillment of a wish

Fasts kept for breaking one's oath

• Sunnat
Fasts which The Prophetsaw
kept
and encouraged others to keep

9th & 10th of Muharram

9th of Zil Hijj (Day of Arafah)

fast of the Ayam Baid i.e. 13, 14 & 15 of every
lunar month

• Mustahab
All fasts besides Farz, Wajib and Sunnat
e.g. fasting on Mondays and Thursdays

• Makrooh

Fasting only on the 9th
or l0th
of Muharram

Fasting only on Saturdays

Fasting against husband’s will

Fasting everyday without a break

• Haram
Fasting on these 5 days is Haram

Eid ul Fitr

Eid ul Adha

Ayyam at Tashriq : the 11th, 12th and 13th of
the month of Dhu al-Hijj

QuranQuran
Surah al Baqarah: 195Surah al Baqarah: 195
Allah says
“and cast not yourselves
to perdition
with your own hands”

SawmSawm
Allah does not overburden His slavesAllah does not overburden His slaves
WHO SHOULD FAST & WHO SHOULD NOT ?
“Fasting is obligatory on the mature sane and
healthy Muslim .The immature (young children)
are encouraged to fast”
(Sahih al Bukhari)

SawmSawm
The ExemptThe Exempt
1. The sick
2. Insane
3. Minors
4. Travellers
5. Menstruating females/ postpartum bleeding
6. Elderly, breast-feeding or pregnant women

HadithHadith
Sahih Muslim: 2471Sahih Muslim: 2471
Ibn Abbas ra
said :
“Do not condemn one who observes fast,
or one who does not observe it (on a journey),
for the Messenger of Allahsaw
observed fast on a journey
or he did not observe it (too)."

HadithHadith
Bukhari & MuslimBukhari & Muslim
Hazrat Aishah ra
said:
"When we would have our menses during the
lifetime of the Prophet, we were ordered to make
up the days of fasting that we had missed but
were not ordered to make up the prayers that we
had missed”

SawmSawm
The ExemptThe Exempt
• Those in combat for Allah may break their fast
The Prophet told his companions in one of the
battles
“You are going to meet your enemy in the
morning, abstaining from fasting is better
for your strength,
so break your fast”

SawmSawm
Conduct of the ExemptConduct of the Exempt
• Nonfasters not to eat & drink openly out of
reverence for Ramzan
• Those whose fast gets invalidated, must conduct
themselves like those fasting
• Missed fasts in Ramzan must be made up
later

SawmSawm
Conditions ofConditions of
FastingFasting

QuranQuran
Surah al Baqarah: 183Surah al Baqarah: 183
'O those who believe,
the fasts have been enjoined upon you
as were enjoined upon those before
so that you be God-fearing'

Conditions of FastingConditions of Fasting
• Intention (Niyyah):
For a fast to be valid,
an intention must be made beforehand
• Abbstinence :
from what Allah has otherwise allowed; viz
eating, drinking and sensual pleasures

General ConditionsGeneral Conditions
Abstinence is in addition to :
• ignorant & indecent speech
• arguing & fighting
• lustful thoughts
Without observing these standard
obligations, Sawm is useless, and is
merely an act of starvation

Obligatory ConditionsObligatory Conditions
• Time for increased acts of devotion
• Without Salaat no other act of worship is
accepted by Allah
• Praying in congregation emphasized
• Refrain from bad behavior such as lying, cheating
etc

Obligatory ConditionsObligatory Conditions
• Special meals eaten before and after each
day of fasting:
• Suhoor before the dawn prayers
• Iftar the evening meal often eaten
communally
and often including dates

Certain EtiquettesCertain Etiquettes
• Taking sahri
The Prophet saw
said:
“ Take (the meal of) suhoor because there is
blessing in it”
“The difference between our fasting and that
of the people of the book is taking the meal
of suhoor”

HadithHadith
MuslimMuslim
The Prophet saw
reported that
Allah said in a Hadith Al-Qudsi:
“I swore by the One (Allah) in Whose Hand is the
soul of Muhammad, the breath of the faster is
sweeter to Allah on the Day of Judgment than the
scent of musk. The faster experiences enjoyment
twice: he is pleased when he breaks his fast, and he
is pleased when he meets his Maker”

Certain EtiquettesCertain Etiquettes
• Iftaar, as soon as sun sets
• Making du’aa upon breaking fast
• Reciting Quran as much as possible during
Ramzan

Acts which void the fastActs which void the fast
• Any carnal act
• Willful ejaculation
• Willful vomiting
• Eating, drinking, smoking
• Menstrual bleeding

ExpiationsExpiations
• Unintentional eating etc does not break a fast
• Intentional breaking of fast necessitates
    - kaffarah
• Harsher penalties during Ramzan
   (mentally able Muslims expected to have
increased awareness of the fast)

Beginning the FastBeginning the Fast
• Eat a pre dawn meal : Sahri
• All eating and drinking must be finished before
sunrise

• After sahri/suhoor, pray the Fajr salaat

True DawnTrue Dawn
Several definitions used for "true dawn“
(al-fajr as-sadiq),
as mentioned in the Hadith

‘Range from when the center of the sun is 12
to 21 degrees below the horizon which
equates to about 40 to 60 minutes before
civil dawn’

Beginning the FastBeginning the Fast
Nothing is allowed
down the throat after Sahri

However,
water unlike food may enter the mouth,
but not go down the throat during wuzu

Ending the FastEnding the Fast
• Meal eaten to end the fast is - Iftar
• Sunnah to Iftar with dates and water before Salat
al Maghrib

(after which one might eat a more wholesome
meal)

SawmSawm
Quality of FastingQuality of Fasting
• In Tableegh ud Deen, Imaam Ghazalira
describes 3 types of fasts by quality
• The Saum of the Awam (the masses)

   Consists of only abstention from physical acts
   Such saum is merely fasting in name
(Only the Fardh obligation is discharged thereby).

SawmSawm
• The middle category of fasting.
• In addition to abstaining from food etc
• Sa-im restrains body from violation of the
Shariah
• holds tongue from gheebat & eyes from casting
gazes at ghair mahareem etc

SawmSawm
• Fasting in the state of kamal (perfection)
• The Saum of the elite - the Muttaqeen
• In addition to physical abstention from
transgression

• Hearts and minds are perpetually engrossed in
zikrullah
• Only remembrance of Allah in their hearts

SawmSawm
Benefits ofBenefits of
FastingFasting

SawmSawm
Benefits of FastingBenefits of Fasting
Fasting has many physical, psychological,
moral and social benefits
However,
Allah has made fasting compulsory
so that we become
pious, God fearing and God conscious

SawmSawm
• Induces empathy for the indigent
• inculcates a sense of fraternity and solidarity
• Muslims can feel and experience what the needy
feel
• Encourages charity and sharing

SawmSawm
• Seen as a sign of obedience to Allah
• A means of controlling one's desires
• Focusing more on devoting oneself to Allah

• Atonement for personal faults and misdeeds

• Teaches patience and self control

SawmSawm
• Helps control passions and temper
• Provide time for meditation
• Strengthens faith
• Cleanses soul
• Makes one cherish and acknowledge blessings of
Allah

SawmSawm
Benefits of fastingBenefits of fasting
• Practice control under severe pressure and
difficult situations for a month in Ramzan
Ramadan prepares one
for the rest of the year
both physically as well as spiritually !

SawmSawm
• Fasting – an effective therapy for psychological
and emotional disorders
• Nurtures resistance and ability to face hardships
• Increases willpower, decreases petulance and
leads to a sane and healthy personality

SawmSawm
• Alleviates diseases of the digestive system
eg liver diseases, indigestion etc
• Decreases obesity, arteriosclerosis, high blood
pressure etc
• Ensures healthy and sound body and mind, by
influencing psychology and physique

SawmSawm
Key to a good healthKey to a good health
Islam wants a Muslim to be
healthy, clean, alert, agile and energetic
The Holy Prophetsaw
has said :
"Fast to be healthy"

FastingFasting
A medical perspectiveA medical perspective

A Swiss physician Dr. Barsilus noted that:

Fasting
hastens destruction of senescent tissues,
then rebuilds new tissue through nutrition

FastingFasting

• Thus fasting restores youth and longevity

• Islam reaps benefits of hunger while avoiding it’s
adverse effects
by prescribing a time for Sahri and Iftar
  (Of course, to ensure good health one should
abstain from gluttony after breaking fast !)

FastingFasting
In the Quran, there is an Ayat encompassing
this medical perspective

‘eat and drink and be not extravagant’

Quran,
Surah al Araf,verse 31

SawmSawm
MissedMissed
FastsFasts

SawmSawm
Missed FastsMissed Fasts
• Missed fasts must not be deferred indefinitely,
but observed as soon as possible
    Regulations of fasting Qaza:

•      not necessary to fix the day for Qaza fast
•       be mindful during Niyah regarding year of
         Qaza fast
•       defer Qaza for Ada fast
•       for Qaza fast, one has to have the intention
           during the night

AtonementAtonement
FidyahFidyah
When someone cannot fast in Ramzan and
cannot make up afterwards (due to ill
health, pregnancy etc) they pay for someone
else to be fed
Regulations:
• Give cash or kind to feed an indigent twice a day
or two persons with 1 meal

ExpiationExpiation
KaffarahKaffarah
Compensation for deliberately missing or
breaking a fast in Ramzan without a valid
reason
Regulation:
• Atonement of missed/broken fast is either fasting
continuously for 60 days or feeding 60 poor
people (adults)

SawmSawm
Wajib (Compulsory)Wajib (Compulsory)
FastsFasts

SawmSawm
Wajib FastsWajib Fasts
• Besides Saum of Ramzan, there are other
compulsory Saum as well
• Saum as Kaffarah for Qasam
• When a Qasam violated
• An option of expiation is to fast 3 consecutive
days

SawmSawm
• Saum as Kaffarah for killing
• When a person has been accidentally killed
• Killer to fast 60 consecutive days
• In addition to Diyat to the heirs

SawmSawm
• Saum of Zihar
• After uttering to wife 'You are for me like the
back of my mother' etc
• the wife becomes unlawful to her husband
• until Saum of Zihar ie 60 fast consecutive days.

SawmSawm
• Saum of Hajj-e-Tamattu
• When Mutamatti sans means to sacrifice a ‘Dam e
Tamattu’ (animal Mutamatti has to sacrifice)
• 10 fasts become obligatory in lieu
3 in Makka (last on Day of Arafah) & 7 after return home
• Not obligatory to fast consecutively
• There are also obligatory fasts
as penalties for certain violations of Ihram

SawmSawm
VoluntaryVoluntary
FastFast

SawmSawm
Voluntary fastingVoluntary fasting
Intention for voluntary fasting
Unlike Ramzan,
the intention
does not have to be made before dawn
• One can start fasting after dawn any time
provided nothing has been eaten

HadithHadith
Muslim and Abu DawoodMuslim and Abu Dawood
Hazrat Aishah ra
said :
“The Prophet, salla Allahu alaihi wa sallam,
came to us one day and said,
"Do you have any [food]?"
We said "No".
He said: Therefore, I am Fasting”

Voluntary FastingVoluntary Fasting
Regulations:Regulations:
• Once started, a voluntary fast becomes obligatory
• if it breaks/ rendered void, reobserve it
• breaking not permissible without genuine reason
• highly undesirable for women to voluntarily fast
without consent of husband

HadithHadith
The Prophet saw
said :
“A woman is not to fast
[even] for one day
while her husband is present
except with his permission,
unless it is during Ramzan”
(al-Bukhari, Muslim and Ahmad)

SawmSawm
Recommended days are :

6 days in Shawwal

Day of Arafah

3 days every month

Monday & Thursday

Tasuah and Ashura

During Muharram

During Shabaan

SawmSawm
Six days of the month of Shawwal:
The Prophet saw
said
"Whoever fasts the month of Ramadhan and
then follows it by fasting six days during the
month of Shawwal will be rewarded as if he had
fasted the entire year”
(Muslim)
[A good deed is multiplied tenfold . 36 fasts equal to 360]

SawmSawm
Six days of the month of Shawwal:
• Any 6 days during Shawwal except the first
(haram on Eid)
• Do not have to be consecutive

SawmSawm
The day of Arafah:
For those not performing the Haj
The Prophet saw
said:
"Fasting on the day of Arafah is an expiation [of
sins] for 2 years, the year preceding it and the
year following it and the fasting the day of Ashura
is an expiation for the year preceding it”
(Muslim)

SawmSawm
Fasting three days of every month:
The Prophet saw
said
"O Abu Tharr ! if you fast 3 days of every month,
then fast the 13th, 14th and 15th (these are the
al ayaam al beedh, the white days)”
(Ahmad)

SawmSawm
Fasting Mondays and Thursdays:
The Prophet saw
would fast Monday and Thursday
He was asked about that and He said:
"The deeds of people are presented to Allah on
every Monday and Thursday. Allah forgives every
Muslim except for those who are deserting each
other. He says: "leave them for later."
(Ahmad)

SawmSawm
Fasting Tasua and Ashura:
• Ninth & tenth of Muharram
Ibn Abbas reported: "The Prophet came to Madinah
and found the Jews fasting the day of Ashura. He asked
them: "Why are you fasting this day?" They said: "This
is a great day. Allah saved Mousa (Moses) and the
tribes of Israel from their enemies on this day and
therefore Mousa fasted on it. "The Prophet said: "We
have more of a right to Musa than you." So he fasted
on that day also and ordered the people to fast on that
day"
(al-Bukhari and Muslim)

SawmSawm
Fasting Tasua and Ashura:
When the Prophetsaw
fasted the day of Ashura, the
people told him that this is a day that Jews and
Christians honor. The Prophet said: "When the
following year comes, Allah willing, we shall fast
both the ninth and the tenth day of Muharram
(that is to be different from the Jews and the
Christians.)" The Prophetsaw
died before the
following year
(Muslim)

SawmSawm
Fasting during the month of Muharram:
Abu Hurairah reported:
I asked the Prophet saw
:
"Which fast is best after the fast of Ramadhan?"
He said: "Fasting during the month of Muharram"
(Muslim)

SawmSawm
Fasting during Shabaan
Shaban is the month before Ramadan
Hazrat Aishara
said:
"I have never seen the Messenger of Allahsaw
completing the fast of a month as he did for
Ramzan, and I have never seen him fasting so
much as he would in Shaban."
(al-Bukhari and Muslim)

ExpiationExpiation
Penalty for voluntary fasts
is more lenient
• fasting for 3 days consecutively or
• feeding and clothing 10 needy people

HadithHadith
Ibn MajahIbn Majah
The Prophet saw
has said:
“The example of the voluntary fasting
is like the man
who takes out money [to give] for charity,
if he likes he gives it
and
if he likes he keeps it”

SawmSawm
ConclusionConclusion
• Allah prescribed it as a mercy for mankind
• It’s obligation delayed until 2nd
Anno Hijri
• Until Tawheed and Salaat became firmly
established
• Made Farz gradually because restraining self is
not easy

SawmSawm
• The Prophet saw
had fasted 9 Ramzans
Fasting has gone through three stages :
• The first : it’s being obligated with the option
of fasting or feeding a needy
• The second : only fasting allowed, but if
person slept before breaking his
fast, it was extended another day

SawmSawm
• The third : is the present stage
And
this is the stage at which
the Religion has settled with
until
the Day of Judgement

HadithHadith
MuslimMuslim
The Prophet saw
reported that
Allah said in a Hadith Al-Qudsi:
"All services of the son of Adam are for him except
fasting. It is for Me, and I will reward him for it.
Fasting is a shield. On the day you fast, do not use
obscenity, nor yell at others, nor act ignorantly
towards them. However, if anyone abuses you
verbally or attempts to draw you to fight with him,
say 'I am fasting' two times.’

HadithHadith
MuslimMuslim
The Prophet saw
then states:
I swore by the One (Allah) in Whose Hand is the
soul of Muhammad, the breath of the faster is
sweeter to Allah on the Day of Judgment than the
scent of musk. The faster experiences enjoyment
twice: he is pleased when he breaks his fast, and
he is pleased when he meets his Maker"

Sawm - the Islamic fast

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